I was sure that we will end up there sooner or later - but to happen in the same book was a bit of sloppy writing - and the clue was not even connected to the reasons why the city was mentioned in this conversation. And then there is the clue for the next stop - earlier in the book three cities are mentioned as important, 2 of them where the siblings had been already, the third one being a new one. And the plot does not hold together as well as the previous ones - taking risks to make sure the swords make it to Japan with them and then just ignoring the fact that they are there made me scratch my head. This is the weakest installment so far - the story is enjoyable as a whole but the writing is too childish in places (and yes, it is a children series but still). Until the siblings' tickets got stolen that is anyway.

Peter Lerangis gets writing duty for the 3rd installment of the series and we see Dan, Amy and Nellie ready to board their Japan-bound flight after sending the cat and the swords as cargo. Very intense, very fast paced, I may even go as far as to say, best one of the series yet. More of Alistar's background and character is revealed - we learn his father was killed by his uncle (the brother's twin) and that he doesn't have a very good relationship with his uncle. I like how the authors keep giving a little bit of insight in to each of the villains - in this one we read a bit of the story from Ian's point of view - and as much as he's bad he's not totally bad. There's a touch of romance in this between Ian Kabra and Amy. They're not particularly long - but then this kind of book never is - or at least never feels like it is. The rest of the Cahill family kind of suck, but what's an adventure story without a villain? Or ten? The plot is riveting - the mix of fiction and history is fascinating and I'm flying through the series. She's laid back and loyal and can speak a seemingly million different languages. As a reader, I relate to Amy but I love Dan's way of looking at things.

Unlike Alex Rider it's not overly sad and unlike Cherub - I like the main characters. This was fast paced and action packed and it was wickedly good.

The Sword Thief by Peter Lerangis